Press Release: Commission monitoring report on protectionist measures taken by key trading partners: worst-case scenario avoided

According to a new monitoring report published on 6 November 2009 by the European Commission, the European Union's major trade partners have taken more than 220 potentially trade restrictive measures between October 2008 and October 2009. Measures range from classical trade barriers such as import bans or tariff increases to more sophisticated measures such as 'buy national' policies. Classical barriers alone potentially affect roughly 5% of EU exports. In the report, the European Commission called for continued openness and engagement at a time of economic turmoil.